(16 October 2020) – On 8 October, DG MARE and the FARNET Support Unit, co-managed by AEIDL, won the first prize of the 1st Corporate Competition on Sustainable Conferences and Events. The prize was awarded for the “Post 2020 – Local Action in a Changing World” conference organised by FARNET on 2-4 December 2019 in Brussels.
The “Post 2020 – Local Action in a Changing World” conference brought together more than 500 participants – local actors, experts and decision-makers from local, regional, national and EU levels.
It aimed to highlight the achievements of community-led local development (CLLD) and to provide inspiration for the EU programming period 2021-2027. Topics discussed included: promoting local food systems; participative local resource management; combating depopulation and attracting talent; making tourism sustainable; rethinking social inclusion; circular economy; energy and climate transition.
An important component of the event was the exhibition of 40 successful local projects. Six projects selected by participants and an expert panel, received awards by Virginijus Sinkevičius, Commissioner for the Environment, Oceans and Fisheries.
The first prize of the Corporate Competition on Sustainable Conferences and Events, organised bynthe European Commission, was awarded to the FARNET conference for the following reasons:
– Venue: The Square is located in the city centre and is well accessible by public transport, with hotels within walking distance.
– Snacks and meals: no single-use plastic, more than 50% plant-based, tap water, reduced waste.
– Limited amount of printouts, sustainable promotional items (bamboo fibre mugs, organic cotton bags), live streaming of plenary sessions.
– An innovative voting system was used for projects in the exhibition, using material from otherwise discarded coloured bottle caps and plastic bottles, which were afterwards recycled or donated to an association.
– Decorations in the exhibition hall used recycled and/or loaned items.
The ceremony of the 1st Corporate Competition on Sustainable Conferences and Events was hosted jointly by two European Commission’s Directors-General, with the presence of Johannes Hahn, Commissioner for Budget and Administration.
The European Fisheries Areas Network (FARNET) brings together Fisheries Local Action Groups (FLAGs), managing authorities, citizens and experts from across the EU to implement Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) under the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF).